Apparatus for the explosive treatment of materials



w. J. PLEWS 2,116,212 APPARATUS FOR THE EXPLOSIVE TREATMENT OF MATERIALS May 3, 1938."

4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 17. 1934 May 3, 1938. w. J. PLEWS 1 APPARATUS FOR THE EXPLOSIVE TREATMENT OF MATERIALS Filed Dec. 17, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 W. J. PLEWS May 3, 1938. v

APPARATUS FOR T1151 EXPLOSIVE TREATMENT OF MATERIALS Filed Dec 17, 1934 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 May 3, 1938. w. J. PLEWS 2,116,212

APPARATUS FOR THE EXPLOSIVE TREATMENT OF MATERIALS Filed Dec. 17, 1934 4 Sheets-Shee'q'4 m EM Patented May 3, 193s -uN i'rs-of si'rATss APPARATUS FOR THE...EX1"LOSIVE MENTO TEBIALS PATENT --oFi-" ci-: 1-

man-- FMA William J. Plews, Falls, N. Y., assignor t o Plews Processes, Inc., a corporation of New ork Application December 11, 1934, Serial mam;

terial to be treated is placed and which is so constructed that the fluid pressure therein may be suddenly released, resulting in the violent discharge of the material into the atmosphere. The effect on the material of the explosive action incident to the sudden release of pressure depends upon the nature of the material treated, the nature, temperature and pressure of the fluid with-' in the chamber, and the length of time which the material is permitted to remain in the chamher under saidconditions of temperature and pressure before the pressure is released. Various types of apparatus for carrying out the so-called "explosion process" have been hereto-- fore proposed. disclosed in United States Patent No. 1,442,304, issued January 16, 1923, to Arthur R. Spencer and William J. Plews, and United States Patent No. 1,455,975, issued to the same inventors May 22 1923. Such devices have certain inherent disadvantages which I have overcome in the present invention.

I have found that in order to obtain the best results from the explosion process, certain fundamental conditions must be observed. For exv ample, in the treatment of certain materials, it is essential, in order to obtain uniformity of particle siz and condition, that the material within the chamber be expelled therefrom substantially instantaneously upon release of the pressure in the chamber. To accomplish this result it is necessary. that provision be made'for increasing the normal speed of travel of that portion or the mass which is remote from the chamher opening. Also, for efiicient operation, is necessary that the entire mass be discharged from the chamber. Any portion remaining in the chamber after releaseof pressure will usually be found to be in the untreated, P rtially treated, or in. some cases, scorched condition, depending 0 upon the nature of the material being treated. Again, it is essentialin the treatment of cereals, particularly oat greats, where the fluid medium is usually at a'relatively high pressure andinthe .super heated condition, to admit the fluid to, the

' chamber in such a manner as to'avoid local scorching, which frequently results in contamination of the, flavor of the entire chamber conll'rom a practical standpoint, the device must so be so constructed as to withstand continuous wide Examples of such apparatus are fluctuations in pressure and temperature, as well as the stresses incident to the sudden opening movement of the chamber cover or valve and the parts associated therewith. The cover must be so constructed and arranged that, upon being.

released, it will be moved away from its seat and out of range of the opening of said chamber within a minimum period of time to permit full enjoyment of the advantages of substantially instantanecus pressure reduction and eliminate the possibility of the material being damaged by being discharged against said cover and associated An object of the present invention. is to provide a device for subjecting variouskindls of material to the explosion process having all of the advantages enumerated above.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the type referred to having a novel type of pressure chamber. I

A further object of the invention is to provide a. device of the type referred to having novel closure, latching and releasing mechanism.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the type referred to having novel means for absorbing the energy imparted to the pressure chamber closure and associated parts by the pressure of the fluid medium within. the chamber when said closure is released.

Other objects, features and advantages will appear as the description proceeds.

I will describe my device in connection with Figure 4 is a side elevational view oi -the device.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary plan view oi the pressure chamber partly'in' section, to illustrate the manner of ingress of fluid medium to the pressure chamber.

- Figure 6 is a perspeetiveivievv or the mansio member.

. and u 7 Figure 8 is a fragmentarysectional of the friction plates. 7

Referring to the drawings, reference numeral view. oi one 'll designates generallya carriage or cradle onf which my device is mounted and which consists of a pair of standards ll adapted to Figure ,7 is an elevational. view ct the device,

I foundation.

bolted or otherwise secured to a floor or other Said standards are connected to each other by means of a tie-plate l2. To provide a convenient means for pivotally mounting the pressure chamber, the top portion of each standard II is in the form of a pair of plates l3, having central adjacent semi-circular portions defining bearings l4.

The pressure chamber as shown in detail in Figs. 2 and 5, consists of a relatively heavy cylindrical member l5, having a closed end l6 and an open end I1. Member I 5 is preferably made of cast steel and cast integrally therewith is a pair of trunnions 18 adapted to be positioned within the bearings l4 to pivotally support the pressure chamber for rotational movement in a vertical plane. The chamberis rotated on said trunnions by manually manipulating lever 18a. Positioned within said member l5 and concentric therewith is a tubular lining member l9 preferably made of non-oxidizing material such as stainless steel, Monel metal, or the like. One end of member I 9 is spaced a short distance from the closed end l6 of member l5, and the other end projects through the open end of said member. The projecting portion is somewhat enlarged and is spherically ground to provide a valve seat 20. The wall of member I5 is increased in thickness at the open end for the purpose of strengthening the same. The inner end of tube I9 is counterbored to provide a shoulder 22 against which is positioned a disc or diffusion plate 23, having over substantially its entire area a plurality of apertures 24, which as shown, are in the form of slots. The diffusion member is in effect a transverse partition which divides the pressure chamber into two communicating chambers, the forward one of which serves as. a treat' ing chamber and the other as a fluid-receiving chamber.

Communicationis afforded to the interior of the pressure chamber through passage-way 25 formed axially'of one of the trunnions l6, and passage-way 26 formed in the wall of member 15. One end of passageway 26 communicates with passageway 25 and the other end terminates adjacent the closed end I 6 of the chamber. Passageway 25 is in communication with a. source of supply of preheated fluid under pressure through nipple 21 and conduit 26. Nipple. 21, which is stationary, is shown as having a screwthreaded end extending into passageway 25 and engaging screw-threads formed in the wall thereof to permit of relative angularmovement between said nipple and trunnion l8 as the pressure chamber is rotated about said trunnion, but any suitable type of swivel connection maybe employed.' The admission of fluid to the pressure chamber is controlled by manually operated valve 29. The closed end l6 of the chamber is provided with an outlet 30 controlled by a valve 3|.

The means for effecting closure of the open end of the pressure chamber will now be described in detail. Journalled in a pair of spaced plates 32 formed integrally with member I5 is a valve yoke 33, which consists of a pair of vertical is a bar 36 having reduced end portions 40, and

having a transverse threaded aperture 4| adapted to be brought into alignment with the longitudinal axis of the pressure chamber when the yoke is in the valve-closing position. The open end 11 of the pressure chamber is closed by a spherically groundvalve or closure member 42 carried by a threaded valve spindle 43, which is threaded through aperture 4| and held in position by means of lock nut 44. Valve 42 is connected to spindle 43 by means of a ball and socket joint 46. Valve 42 is provided with a leak-port 42a.

The means for forcing the valve into tight engagement with the valve seat and for releasing the valve are as follows: mounted on the top of member l5 and preferably cast integrally therewith, is 'a vertical lug 56, having an aperture 5| in which is positioned. a shaft 52. The ends of shaft 52 are reduced to, provide a pair of aligned cranks 53', which are eccentricazlly arranged with respect to said shaft. A rod 54 is mounted on each crank 53. Said rods extend in substantially parallel relationship and at their free ends support a detent block 56 having a detent 51 formed in its under surface. A lever or handle 58 is mounted on one of said cranks in such a manner as to rotate therewith. Intermediate their ends rods 54 are joined by a shaft or pin 53 on which is mounted a cam 60 which is adapted to be rotated by cam handle 6|. end, member 15 is provided with a vertical portion 63 provided with teeth 64 and 65 and an intermediate flat surface 66. Cam 6!] is provided with a pair of teeth 61 and 68 which are adapted to engage with teeth 64 and 65 respectively when the handle 6| is rotated in a counter-clockwise direction (looking at Figs. 1, 2 and 4) to positively lock rods 54 and detent 51 in their lowermost position, illustrated in'Flg. 1. A spiral spring 63, having one end secured to the shaft 59 and the other end hooked over a pin 66a carried by one of the rods 54, tends to hold the cam in this position. The cam surface, indicated by the numeral 16, is so designed that upon rotation of the handle 61 in the clockwise direction, it will coact with surface 66 to elevate the rods 54 and detent 51 to their upper, or closure-releasing position, illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 2. A stop member 1| is provided in the upper portion of member 63, to limit the upward movement of rods 54. Looking at Fig. 2, it will be noted that detent 51, when in its lower position, is in the path of travel of projecting portion 12 of member 36. The upper surface ofportion'12 is inclined as indicated at 13, to permit the detent to ride over a said surface when the valve is being closed.

Adjacent itsopen I sumes the vertical or loading position illustrated f by dotted lines in Fig. 4. In this position valve 42 is swung free from the chamber opening. Oat groats are poured into the chamber through its open end until the treating zone is substantiallyteeth 61 and 68 to engage teeth 64 and 65 to positively hold rods 54 and detent 51 in the downward'position. Shaft 52 is then rotated in the clock-wise direction by means of lever 56, causing rods 54 to be moved to the right (looking at -Fig. 2). This movement of rods 54 will cause detent'51 to be brought into engagement with projection 12. a As further pressure is applied to,

the lever 56, valve 42 obviously will be brought into'ti'ght engagement with valve seat 26. The

ball and socket connection permits limited universalmovement of the valve. Due to the fact assumes.

that the valve is spherically ground, it will seat in any position within the limits of said move- 'ment. Because of the swivel mounting of supporting bar 39, pressure will be uniformly applied to the valve, irrespective of the position it to thechamber. 'I have found that steam at about'200 pounds pressure and from 50 to 200 degrees ofsuperheat is a satisfactory medium for the treatment of oats. The fluid enters the fluid-receiving zone of the chamber from pas sageway 26 and is broken up into a series of fine streams by diffusion member 23. As the fluid progresses toward the forward end of the chamber, it forces the air contained therein through leak-port 42a to the atmosphere. It is essential that all of the air be removed from the chamber to prevent the formation of air pockets in the zone occupied by the oat groats.

The chamber is then rotated to the horizontal or discharge position shown in Figures 2 and 4. After the material has remained for the necessary period of time, in the case of oat groats for from one and a half to two minutes, valve 29 is I closed and handle 6| is rotated ln the clock-wise direction, (looking at'Fig. 2) causing teeth 61 and 68 to become free from engagement with teeth 84 and 85, and causing rods 54 to be elevated by the action of cam surface ill on surface 66. As soon as detent 51 has been raised to the position where it is clear'of projection 12,

valve l2 and yoke 32 will be violently swung to the open position by the pressure of the fluid content of the groat. Obviously, the less sudden-' ly the pressure is released, the less vigorously the steam will tend to escape from the pores of the groat, and the less the size of the groat will be increased. As the greats remote from the open end of the chamber must travel the entire length of the treating chamber before they reach the atmosphere, they would normally be subjected to less suddenpressure reduction than those adjacent the open endof the chamber. I have found, however, that when diffusion member" is used, the steam occupying the fluid-receiving zone of the chamber functions, on sudden release of pressure, as an auxiliary-supply of steam to maintain the pressure within the chamber relatively high until the entire mass of groats hasbeen discharged therefrom. Also, as pointed out above, as said auxiliary steam rushes toward the open end of the chamber, it carries with it any groats which may not have been originally discharged.

If the valve should become worn, it

In other words, the steam occupying the steam space, acts, upon release of pressure within the chamber, as a secondary supply of steam which is fed to the treating chamber simultaneously with the reduction in pressure to accomplish the results set forth above.

The energy imparted to the valve and yoke by the pressure of the iiuid medium may be absorbed in any suitable manner, but I have found the novel means, shown in the illustrations to be very convenient and eflfective. The valve is permitted to swing freely until it is out 'of alignment with the chamber to effect substantially instantaneous reduction of pressure and to avoid damage to the contents of the chamber. As the valve mechanism rotates inthe downward direction, its movement is accelerated by the force of the gravity. As soon as the valve mechanism is out of range of the chamber, the vertical ends of the strap 35, which is shown as U-shaped, come into frictional engagement with a pair of friction plates 15, carried by lugs 16 depending from casting IS; The bearing force exerted by plates hollow boss or lug 19 extends from member 16 and within said boss is a thrust member 80 bearing directly on plate 15. Threaded through the open end of said boss is an adjusting screw II, and positioned between said screw and said thrust member isa helical spring 82. Spring 82 tends to hold plate in the dotted line position shown in Fig. 8. Obviously, adjustment of screw 8| will vary the tension of spring 82 and will definitely affect the magnitude of the energy dissipated through frictional engagement of the strap with plates 15, as the valve yoke passes between said plates during the opening movement. The residual energy is absorbed by a resilient member, preferably a solid block of rubber which is positioned in the path of travel of the valve yoke. As shown, a pocket 83 is formed in the tie-plate l2 and a solid block of resilient material I4 is placed therein at such an angle that its upper surface is parallel to the contacting surface of the valve yoke at the instant of contact. Block 84 serves as a cushion stop member to yieldingly limit the downward movement of the valve mechanism.

Springs 82 may be so adjusted that the impact of the valve mechanism on block 84 will be relatively light and the valve mechanism will come to rest thereon. ,Or, if desired, the adjustment of springs 82 may be -varied so as to permit an I have shown one means forso doing which consists of a pair of rods 86, one

of which is mounted in each standard H, as shown in Figs. 1 and 7. The forward ends 81 of the rods are reduced in size to fit through apertures formed in the forward legs of standards H, and are provided with flat under surfaces adapted, when the gun is in the horizontal position, to

rest upon the upper surfaces of plates 88, one of which extends from each side of casting i5, thus locking the chamber in the horizontal position. The rods are urged in the forward or looking position by springs 90 acting on collars 9|, there being one spring and one collar mounted on each rod. The rods are withdrawn from the locking position by depressing either one of a pair of foot pedals 92, forming one arm of bell crank levers 93 connected to the rods through links 94. Both pedals are mounted on shaft 95 for simultaneous rotational movement. Thus depression of either pedal will release both rods and permit the chamber to be rotated to the vertical position for loading. 7

In the above I have described one form of my invention. Many modifications will occur to those skilled in the art. For example, valve seat 20 might be formed on a protruding end of member l5, rather than on member i9. Also, it may be found that in the treatment of certain materials it is not desirable to evacuate the air from the chamber. In such cases a solid plug may be substituted for the apertured member "a. Further, the specific type of closure means may be varied. -A new and novel process which may be carried on by the use of the apparatus herein disclosed and claimed is disclosed in my copending application Serial No. 757,964, filed December 17, 1934; and entitled Method for treatment of materials, It is to be understood, however, that the apparatus of the instant disclosure may be adapted for carrying on processes other than that disclosed and claimed in my aforesaid pending patent application. It is my intent that this patent shall cover all such modifications as come within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. Apparatus for the exploding of starch-0on taining materials by the utilization of high fluid pressure and high temperature comprising a pressure chamber having an open end and a closed end, means for closing the open end of said chamber, means for admitting a gaseous fluid un der high pressure to said chamber adjacent its closed end, and a perforated partition subtending substantially the whole area of said chamber and being interposed between said fluid admission port and the open end of said chamber for dividing the fluid admitted to said chamber into -a"plura1ity of fine streams, said partition dividing said pressure chamber into a large treating sub-chamber to hold the material to be treated and a reserve sub-chamber of substantial'volume to hold the gaseous fluid whereby the expansion of said fluid contained in the reserve sub-chamber, on opening of said closing'means, assists in the expulsion of the said materials from the treat ng sub-chamber.

2. Apparatus for the exploding of cereal grains comprising a high pressure chamber having an.

open end and a closed end, means for admitting fluid under pressure to said chamber adjacent its closed end, a valve yoke rotatably supported pressure within said chamber, and a perforated partition within said chamber and subtending its area for dividing the fluid pressure medium into a plurality of fine streams, said partition dividing said pressure chamber into a large treating subchamber to hold the material to be treated and a reserve sub-chamber of substantial volume to hold the gaseous fluid whereby the expansion of said fluid contained in the reserve sub-chamber, on opening of said closing means, assists in the expulsion of the said materials from the treating sub-chamber.

3. Apparatus for the treatment of materials comprising a carriage provided with trunnion bearings. a pressure chamber mounted in said bearings for rotational movement in a vertical plane, closure means pivotally mounted on said chamber for closing same, means for holding said closure means in the closed position, means for releasingsaid holding means to permit said closure means to be moved away from said chamber, and means for absorbing the energy of said closure means, said last named means comprising a pair of stationary spring-pressed friction plates adapted to frictionaliy engage a portion of said closure mechanism during its opening movement to dissipate some of the energy of said mechanism, and a resilient buffer positioned in the path of travel of said closure mechanism to adsorb the residual energy thereof.

4. Apparatus for the treatment of grains by the explosion process comprising a high pressure chamber, closure means for said chamber, means for admitting gaseous fluid under high pressure to said chamber, and a perforated partition subtending substantially the whole area of said chamber and being disposed within said chamber for dividing said chamber into a materialtreating'chamber and a gaseous fluid-receiving chamber of substantial volume whereby upon release of said closure means, expansion of the gaseous fluid pressure medium occupying said fluid-receiving chamber will assist in the expulsion of the material undergoing treatment from said material-treating chamber.

5. Apparatus for the treatment of cereal grains by the explosion process which comprises a tubular member having an open end and a closed end,

chamber after the cereal grains have been disposed therein, means for admitting a preheated fluid under pressure to said auxiliary chamber 'whereby said perforated partition diffuses said preheated fluid into a plurality of fine streams wherebyeach cereal grain is substantially simultaneously and uniformly subjected to the influence of said preheated fluid medium, and means for releasing rapidly said closure means whereby substantially all of the cereal grains will be forcibly and substantially instantaneously discharged from said treating chamber.

WILLIAM J. PLEWS. 

